Refrigerator



April 20, 1937.

R. F. BlXBY ET AL REFRIGERATOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed NOV. 5, 1934 6, m m F.

April 20, 1937. i R. F. BIXBY ET AL REFRIGERATOR Filed Nov. 5, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 NHEYNNNNHNEQHNNNNWN Patented- Apr. 20, i937 STATS REFRIGERATOR Ralph F. Bixby and John E. Meyer, St. Louis, Mo.; said Meyer assignor to said Bixby Application November 5, 1934, Serial No. 751,611

3 Claims. .(Cl. 62-915) Our invention relates to refrigerators and has of a pump 6, shown in detail in Fig. 3, through for its main object the provision of an air treata coil I positioned in the compartment 2 and, ing compartment and a storage chamber for preferably, near a grilled opening 8 through foodstuffs both combined in a single cabinet or which treated air is discharged from the comother casing. partment. Circulation through the inletopen- 5 Heretofore, air conditioning apparatus as ings 9 of the comp rtm n and through the commonly used in homes has comprised a room opening 8 in the direction indicated by the cabinet or casing from. which treated air was arrows in the figures is maintained by a fan W discharged into the space to be cooled. Usually, of the form shown or by any other suitable me- 10 these cabinets contained a compartment through chanical means. The operation of this part of 10 which the air was circulated over a coil whereby our new and improved device will condition satisthe air was cooled; In some instances these factorily the air in a given space. As described v coils were supplied with a heat exchange agent in our co-pending application operation of the or fluid by a compressor or other means conpump 6 and the fan l0 may be controlled by tained in the cabinet, but in other instances the any suitable expedient either manually or au- 15 means for providing the agent was located at tomatically governed.

aremote point in the building. However, in any The details of construction hereinabove deinstance, a cooling agent at a low temperature scribed in connection with this embodiment of is available in the cabinet but, before our inour invention may be varied to .a great extent vention such agent has been used only to cool because, as explained before, we do not wish to 20 air passing through the compartment. limit our present invention to use with any As stated above the main object of our inparticular form of air conditioning device. vention is to provide a refrigerator including an The essence of our invention resides in proair conditioning compartment and astorage viding the storage chamber 4 with such archamber for foodstuffs both combined in .a sinrangement and adaption that the means for gle cabinet or casing; but our invention has for cooling this chamber is the same as the means a further object a provision of such a device used to cool the air in a given space and, prefwhich may be manufactured at low cost, but erably, the cooling of the chamber is effected inwbich will be eflicient and satisfactoryin operdependent y O Ope a of t a on t 3 ation. apparatus. That is to say, the refrigerant is Whilea device embodying our invention, as supplied to the c mp m t depe e t y of stated above, may include refrigerating means of the supply of refrigerant or agent to the coil 7. any type in the accompanying drawings we have Preferably, the chamber 5 is insulated as inshown our invention embodied in combination dicated at H, but if desired the insulation bewith an air conditioning apparatus of the gentween the rear wall of the compartment and the 5 .eral type described in our co-pending application outer wall of the receptacle 3 may be eliminated executed and filed on the same day as this one. In so that the chamber 4 will receive a maxim coolthese drawings Fig. 1 is a sectional view in eleing effect from the agent in said receptacle. ,A vation of this embodiment; Fig. 2 is a section plurality of hollow shelf-like vessels I 2 are inalong the lines 2-2 in Fig. 1 and Fig. 3 shows cluded in this embodiment with their inner ends 40' a structural detail. opening into the receptacle 3 whereby the heat Referring to the figures the embodiment shown exchange agent from said receptacle may find therein consists of a cabinet I of any suitable its way into the vessels and, although no cirshape and design with the interior thereof diculation of agent inside of these vessels is provided into a compartment 2 through which cirvided for by mechanical means, we have found 45 culates air being treated, a receptacle 3 for a that the agent in the vessel will be maintained heat exchange agent and a storage chamber t at a low temperature through conduction. Ice

' for foodstuffs. The receptacle 3 has associated trays l3 for freezing water or other liquid may therewith a container 5 for a low temperature be placed on the vessels l2. In the front of the refrigerant such as solidified CO2. cabinet there may be provided an opening I4 50 As explained in my co-pending application the through which foodstuffs may be introduced into container 5 preferably is of thin metal so as and taken from the chamber 4 and this opening to be in intimatethermal association with the may be closed normally by a door I. heat exchange agent, such as brine, in the re- It will be seen readily that if the elements de ceptacle 3. This agent is circulated. by means scribed above or their equivalents are combined 5 in a manner as taught by us herein a convenient and easily accessible chamber for storing foodstuifs, beverages and the like is provided and the cooling of such chamber will be effected at virtually no cost.

We do not intend to limit ourselves to the exact details of construction shown in the drawings because the size, shape and arrangement of the various parts may be varied within wide limits without deviating from the spirit of our invention as included in the appended claims.

What we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:-

1. A refrigerator comprising a cabinet having a compartment through which air from outside of said cabinet is circulated to be cooled, said cabinet including a chamber for a low temperature refrigerant arranged to cool a liquid heat exchange agent, means for circulating said heat exchange, agent through said compartment for cooling air, and said cabinet also having a storage chamber for food stuffs and means for cooling said storage chamber by said heat exchange agent independently of cooling air in said compartment.

2. A refrigerator comprising a cabinet having a compartment through which air from outside of said cabinet is circulated to be cooled, said cabinet including a chamber for a low temperature refrigerant arranged to" cool a liquid heat exchange agent, means for circulating said heat exchange agent from said chamber and through said compartment for cooling air, and said cabinet also having a storage chamber for food stuffs and means for circulating said heat exchange agent from said chamber through said storage chamber independently of said circulation through said compartment.

3. A refrigerator comprising a cabinet having a compartment through which air from outside of said cabinet is circulated to be cooled, said .cabinet including a receptacle for a liquid heat RALPH F. BIXBY. JOHN H. MEYER. 

